Ford Puma review

Is the Ford Puma a good car?

If cars could feel emotions such as pressure, then the Ford Puma would likely have had a bit of a sweat on for most of its five-year life so far. Not only did it arrive with some hostility from Ford fans who remembered the original Puma – an affordable yet utterly brilliant Fiesta-based coupé – but more recently, it has superseded the iconic supermini as the brand’s smallest car. Given that model’s decades-long success, taking its place was a mammoth task. 

But the Puma has acquitted itself very well. Although it wouldn’t outhandle the original Puma coupé, it was still easily the best car to drive in the flourishing small SUV segment. Indeed, only its low-rent cabin let the side down. However, the 2024 facelift brought subtle exterior design changes and, more significantly, introduced an overhauled dashboard layout, which addressed that flaw.

How much does the Ford Puma cost?

With the demise of the Fiesta, the Ford Puma is now the cheapest car in the company’s line-up. It starts from around £26,000, which gets you behind the wheel of a 123bhp 1.0 EcoBoost Titanium with a six-speed manual gearbox.

The most recent facelift in 2024 saw the range rejigged so that all versions are now powered by Ford’s 1.0 EcoBoost three-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine with mild-hybrid assistance. This has power outputs of 123bhp, 153bhp and 168bhp, with the latter being the only engine now offered in the ST performance flagship - the 1.5 EcoBoost has been dropped.

There are six-speed manual and seven-speed automatic gearbox options for the least powerful EcoBoost motor, while the other two options come as standard with the seven-speed automatic.

While the original Ford Puma was a fun, small, front-wheel-drive Fiesta-based coupe that was launched in 1997, the current car is about as far removed from that as you can get. It’s still based on the Fiesta, but is now a small five-door SUV. 

It’s based on the seventh-generation supermini (that has sadly ceased production), and shares its chassis and engines. There are no plans to axe the Puma, however, and an electric version is even in the pipeline to help it compete in a very crowded sector of the market.

The Puma trim structure has been slimmed down when compared with the pre-facelift car, and now has four core versions: Titanium, ST-Line, ST-Line X and the performance-focused ST.

Titanium has all the goodies you’d hope for in a small SUV, including 17-inch alloy wheels, power-folding mirrors, a rear parking camera with sensors, cruise control, selectable drive modes and a 12-inch central touchscreen.

ST-Line models include a muscular bodykit, sports suspension, a leather sports steering wheel and alloy pedals, while ST-Line X cars come with stylish 18-inch wheels, privacy glass, a powered bootlid, a wireless charging pad for your smartphone and a 10-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system. The sportiest ST features 19-inch alloy wheels, a body styling kit, Ford Performance seats, a 360-degree camera and a more powerful engine.

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If you want to drive the most entertaining small SUV available to buy today, then the Ford Puma is it. Thanks to its Fiesta-derived running gear, it delivers a similar level of engagement, with quick steering and a grippy, nimble chassis. There’s a slightly higher centre of gravity, so it’s not quite as sharp as the Fiesta, but it’s still enjoyable when compared with its class rivals. The engines are decent performers, although the auto gearbox is a bit sluggish in its responses. Read more about the Ford Puma’s engines, performance and drive…

Ford follows the common route of fitting a small-capacity turbocharged petrol engine to the Puma. This is designed to deliver good performance while meeting ever-tighter emissions targets, and overall the EcoBoost 1.0-litre is a decent performer. The most recent update saw mild-hybrid tech added to all engines, which offers a modest boost in efficiency. Low-cost motoring will be coming soon to the Puma range with the arrival of an all-electric variant. Read more about the Ford Puma’s MPG, emissions and running costs…

The big exterior clue to the updated Ford Puma is the large Ford badge now mounted on the grille, but inside there are more wholesale changes. Ford has introduced a significantly smarter cabin for 2024. It’s not quite the plushest interior available in this category, but the improvements, including a new 12-inch display for every model in the line-up, are certainly welcome. Read more about the Ford Puma’s interior, design and technology…

Compact dimensions mean the Ford Puma is one of the smaller cars in the small SUV class, but decent packaging mean that there’s still a reasonable amount of space inside. The boot is a particular highlight, with Ford’s MegaBox system under the boot floor providing additional storage that rivals struggle to match. Read more about the Ford Puma’s boot space, comfort and practicality…

The Ford Puma uses the same platform as the Fiesta, and the Puma’s EcoBoost engines are well established and feature in a wide range of models, so there should be strength in numbers when it comes to reliability. While there are a lot of Ford dealers across the country, respondents to the Driver Power survey don’t hold them in high regard. Read more about the Ford Puma’s reliability and safety…

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Ford Puma ST-Line: long-term test

Senior photographer, Pete Gibson, put almost 30,000 miles on a pre-facelift Ford Puma 1.0 mHEV 155 ST-Line back in 2021. Pete really enjoyed his time behind the wheel, often finding the Puma to be more impressive on the road than some of the high-end performance cars he was snapping at various shoots.

He found having a washable box under the boot floor a big help when dealing with his children’s muddy shoes, while there was enough space to store all his camera gear. However, a larger fuel tank would’ve been welcome, and the interior quality could have been better, with a broken parcel shelf occurring on his first outing with the car.